PSX closes in red as investors book profits
The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) ended Friday's session on a weak note, with the KSE-100 index slipping over 260 points to close just below 145,400 as investors booked profits after a brief rally.
The market opened on a positive note, climbing to intra-day high of 146,813 points on selective blue-chip buying, but momentum faded amid concerns over a swelling trade deficit, declining foreign exchange reserves and macroeconomic headwinds, prompting a late-session sell-off ahead of the weekend.
Engro Holdings, Fauji Fertiliser Company (FFC), Oil and Gas Development Company (OGDC) and MCB Bank were among the top positive contributors, whereas Engro Fertilisers, Lucky Cement, Systems Limited, Mari Petroleum and Hubco dragged the index down.
"Stocks closed under pressure amid profit-taking in overbought shares. Concerns remained over a $2.8 billion trade deficit for July, up 44% year-on-year (YoY)," said Ahsan Mehanti, MD of Arif Habib Corp.
Foreign outflows, concerns over provincial tax collection shortfalls and the missed cash surplus target under IMF conditions as well as political noise were the catalysts for bearish close at the PSX, he added.
At the end of trading, the benchmark KSE-100 index posted a decline of 264.34 points, or 0.18%, and settled at 145,382.80.
"Continuing its momentum, the KSE-100 index opened on a positive note and touched the intra-day high of 1,166 points (up 0.8%)," Topline Securities noted in its market review. However, investors preferred to book gains before the weekend as the index declined to close at 145,383, down 0.18%.
The top positive contribution to the index came from Engro Holdings, FFC, OGDC and MCB Bank as they cumulatively contributed 395 points. On the other hand, Engro Fertilisers, Lucky Cement, Systems Limited, Mari Petroleum and Hubco weighed the index down by 399 points, it said.
Traded value-wise, OGDC (Rs5.44 billion), FFC (Rs4.68 billion), Pakistan Petroleum (Rs4.19 billion) and Pakistan State Oil (Rs3.57 billion) dominated the trading activity, Topline added.
Arif Habib Limited (AHL) noted that the KSE-100 enjoyed another solid week, rising 3.08% to close above 145,000. On Friday, 38 shares gained while 62 declined, with Engro Holdings (+2.66%), FFC (+0.86%) and OGDC (+1.27%) driving the index higher, while Engro Fertilisers (-2.64%), Lucky Cement (-1.98%) and Systems Limited (-1.61%) were the biggest drags.
It mentioned that remittances from overseas Pakistanis rose 7.4% YoY to $3.2 billion in July, though they fell 6% month-on-month (MoM). With August underway, equities enter a seasonally weak phase lasting through October.
In MSCI's latest review, Faysal Bank (-1.93%) was added to the MSCI Frontier Markets Standard Index, raising Pakistan's weight to about 6.3% with 27 constituents. For the coming week, support for the KSE-100 index lies at 143,000-145,000, with resistance at 146,800-147,000; a break below support could align the index with its longer-term seasonal trend, AHL said.
Muhammad Hasan Ather of JS Global commented that the KSE-100 index closed a volatile session down by 264 points at 145,383, despite rising earlier to 146,813 amid investor optimism.
The gains were driven by selective buying, but the broader market remained under pressure due to falling foreign exchange reserves and a widening trade deficit. The central bank's reserves declined for a third straight week, reflecting external debt repayments, he said.
Going forward, persistent macroeconomic concerns may cap the upside potential, with investor focus likely to remain on currency stability and fiscal management signals, Ather added.
Overall trading volumes were recorded at 548.1 million shares, compared with the previous day's tally of 712.5 million. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs45.5 billion.
Shares of 482 companies were traded. Of these, 151 stocks closed higher, 296 fell and 35 remained unchanged.
Pakistan Petroleum was the volume leader with trading in 21.97 million shares, losing Rs1.51 to close at Rs188.23. It was followed by The Bank of Punjab with 21.3 million shares, losing Rs0.23 to close at Rs13.92 and Loads Limited with 20.6 million shares, gaining Rs0.73 to close at Rs16.58. Foreign investors bought shares worth a net Rs33.5 million, the National Clearing Company reported.
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